Musings from an overworked translator

The Professor and the Madman August 5, 2008

I recently finished reading The Professor and the Madman: A Tale of Murder, Insanity, and the Making of the Oxford English Dictionary by Simon Winchester, which is about the creation of the Oxford English Dictionary. I found the book to be quite fascinating. Imagine a time when there were no dictionaries. I’m not even sure I can. We take for granted that we can look up a word in a dictionary (or even plug “define:WORD” in Google) and have an instant answer.

Despite having been trained as a terminologist at Kent State University, I had also never really put much thought into what a daunting task compiling a dictionary was back in the late 19th century without the help of computers. We were taught to enter the words into a computer program (back then it was MTX now it is MultiTerm or some other program), which then compiled the words and alphabetized them for us. The folks at the OED compiled entries on slips of paper and published sections every few years.

It took Professor James Murray and his helpers 70 years to complete the dictionary with the help of hundreds of volunteer contributors. They distributed handbills through bookstores and libraries asking for volunteer readers to begin assembling word lists and quotations that illustrated the meaning of those words. The volunteers sent in slips of paper, which were then compiled into volumes. The project ended up encompassing 12 volumes. Professor Murray dedicated 40 years of his life to the project and did not live to see it completed. One contributor (and the most prolific) was an American, Dr. W.C. Minor, who had been committed to the Broadmoor Criminal Lunatic Asylum for murdering an innocent British brewery worker whom the deluded Minor believed was an assassin sent by his enemies. Dr. Minor was responsible for almost 10,000 words in the final dictionary and was a huge asset to the project.

This book is definitely worth reading if you have a love of languages. It will not disappoint. It has intrigue, lots of historical facts and stories, as well as the minutia involved in making a dictionary.

Need a break? Watch this…, July 17, 2008

I’ve been unbelievably busy this week. I translated a 6,800 word batch of medical reports on Monday and Tuesday and am now working on an 8,000 word computer game on horoscopes and love signs. I’m approaching burnout, so I took a break this afternoon to finally watch Act One of Dr. Horrible’s Sing-along Blog starring Neil Patrick Harris, Felicia Day and Nathan Fillion, which was released on Tuesday and almost immediately crashed the web site server and is now the No. 1 download on iTunes. Act Two is being released today and Act Three goes live on Saturday. They will only stay up until Sunday, July 20th. After that you can download it from iTunes and it will probably be released on DVD soon.

Dr. Horrible’s Sing-along Blog is the latest project by Joss Whedon (the creator of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel and Firefly as well as the feature movie Serenity). It is the first-ever superhero musical, featuring shy, wannabe mad scientist Dr. Horrible (Neil Patrick Harris), his archnemesis Captain Hammer (Nathan Fillion) and the damsel in the middle (Felicia Day). Whedon wrote it during the writer’s strike in 2008 and filmed it in 6 days on a minimal budget. Joss’ work is known for its tight, witty dialog, and he can also write a catchy tune. And man, does Neil Patrick Harris have some fantastic pipes! I got chills listening to him.

I’ve been a huge fan of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel for years now, since I first watched them in Germany (they translated surprisingly well, although they usually aired at 2 in the morning). If you haven’t seen his work, I highly recommend it. You’ll love the dialog and will stay for the gripping, enjoyable storylines.

A fun interview with a language lover June 30, 2008

Today’s Cleveland Plain Dealer features a short interview with Heba El-Attar, an assistant professor at Cleveland State University. The interview was featured in the PDQ section, which has a light take on arts & life, so the interview isn’t exactly “intellectual,” but it’s a fun read all the same. Ms. El-Attar speaks Arabic, French, English, Spanish and some Italian and has lived in Germany, Spain, Milwaukee and Cleveland. I particularly like her explanations of Arabic culture and the misconceptions most Americans have of Arabic.